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This day in history

This day in history: 4 November

Events, births and deaths on this date, ordered by how many people look them up.

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Key facts

374 historical events, births and deaths are listed for 4 November.
Entries come from Wikipedia’s day pages and are ordered by page views.
2025: UPS Airlines Flight 2976, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11F crashes into multiple buildings during takeoff at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville, Kentucky, killing 15 people, including the 3 crew members.

Holidays and observances

Christian feast day: Blessed Teresa Manganiello

Christian feast day: Charles Borromeo (Roman Catholic Church)

Christian feast day: Emeric of Hungary

Christian feast day: Felix of Valois

Christian feast day: Joannicius the Great

Christian feast day: Modesta

Christian feast day: November 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Christian feast day: Our Lady of Kazan (Russian Orthodox Church)

Christian feast day: Pierius

Christian feast day: Vitalis and Agricola

Community Service Day (Dominica)

Flag Day (Panama)

Events

2025UPS Airlines Flight 2976, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11F crashes into multiple buildings during takeoff at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville, Kentucky, killing 15 people, including the 3 crew members.

2022The Khash massacre, which refers to the repression of protesters by Iranian security forces, resulting in 18 deaths and more than 20 injuries.

2020The Tigray War begins with Tigrayan rebels launching attacks on Ethiopian command centers.

2015A building collapses in the Pakistani city of Lahore resulting in at least 45 deaths and at least 100 injuries.

2015A cargo plane crashes shortly after takeoff from Juba International Airport in Juba, South Sudan, killing at least 37 people.

2010Aero Caribbean Flight 883 crashes into Guasimal, Sancti Spíritus; all 68 passengers and crew are killed.

2010Qantas Flight 32, an Airbus A380, suffers an uncontained engine failure over Indonesia shortly after taking off from Singapore, crippling the jet. The crew manage to safely return to Singapore, saving all 469 passengers and crew.

2008Barack Obama becomes the first person of biracial or African-American descent to be elected as President of the United States.

2002Chinese authorities arrest cyber-dissident He Depu for signing a pro-democracy letter to the 16th Communist Party Congress.

1995Israel-Palestinian conflict: Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated by an extremist Israeli.

1993China Airlines Flight 605, a brand-new 747-400, overruns the runway at Hong Kong Kai Tak Airport.

1980Ronald Reagan is elected as the 40th President of the United States, defeating incumbent Jimmy Carter.

1979Iran hostage crisis: A group of Iranian college students overruns the U.S. embassy in Tehran and takes 90 hostages.

1973The Netherlands experiences the first car-free Sunday caused by the 1973 oil crisis. Highways are used only by cyclists and roller skaters.

1970Salvador Allende takes office as President of Chile, the first Marxist to become president of a Latin American country through open elections.

1970Vietnam War: The United States turns over control of the air base at Bình Thủy in the Mekong Delta to South Vietnam.

1967Iberia Flight 062 crashes in Blackdown, West Sussex, killing all 37 people on board including British actress June Thorburn.

1966The Arno River floods Florence, Italy, to a maximum depth of 6.7 m (22 ft), leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. Venice is also submerged on the same day at its record all-time acqua alta

1962The United States concludes Operation Fishbowl, its final above-ground nuclear weapons testing series, in anticipation of the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.

1960At the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Jane Goodall observes chimpanzees creating tools, the first-ever observation in non-human animals.

1956Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution against the Soviet Union that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.

1952The United States government establishes the National Security Agency, or NSA.

1944World War II: Operation Pheasant, an Allied offensive to liberate North Brabant in the Netherlands, ends successfully.

1944World War II: The 7th Macedonian Liberation Brigade liberates Bitola for the Allies.

1942World War II: Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel begins a retreat of his forces after a costly defeat during the Second Battle of El Alamein. The retreat would ultimately last five months.

1939World War II: U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.

1936Spanish Civil War: Largo Caballero reshuffles his war cabinet, persuading the anarcho-syndicalist CNT to join the government.

1924Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming becomes the first female elected as governor in the United States.

1922In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.

1921Japanese prime minister Hara Takashi is assassinated in Tokyo.

1921The Saalschutz Abteilung (hall defense detachment) of the Nazi Party is renamed the Sturmabteilung (storm detachment) after a large riot in Munich.

1918World War I: The Armistice of Villa Giusti between Italy and Austria-Hungary is implemented.

1890City and South London Railway: London's first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.

1868Camagüey, Cuba, revolts against Spain during the Ten Years' War.

1864American Civil War: Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in materiel at the Battle of Johnsonville.

1852Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy.

1847Sir James Young Simpson, a Scottish medical doctor, discovers the anaesthetic properties of chloroform.

1839Newport Rising: The last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.

1798The Russo-Ottoman siege of Corfu begins.

1791Northwest Indian War: The Western Confederacy of American Indians wins a major victory over the United States in the Battle of the Wabash.

Born on this day

2006Darja Varfolomeev, Russian-German rhythmic gymnast

2000Sun Yingsha, Chinese table tennis player

2000Tyrese Maxey, American basketball player

1999Emma Maltais, Canadian ice hockey player

1998Achraf Hakimi, Moroccan footballer

1996Eric Paschall, American basketball player

1996John Olive, Australian rugby league player

1996Kaitlin Hawayek, American ice dancer

1996Michael Christian Martinez, Filipino figure skater

1994Billy Stanlake, Australian cricketer

1993Ce'Aira Brown, American middle-distance runner

1993Elisabeth Seitz, German gymnast

1993Taylor Tomlinson, American stand-up comedian

1992Hiroki Nakada, Japanese footballer

1992Julian Wießmeier, German footballer

1992Yurii Bieliaiev, Belarusian ice dancer

1991Alon Day, Israeli race car driver

1991Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove, Dutch tennis player

1990Jean-Luc Bilodeau, Canadian actor

1988David Mead, Papua New Guinean rugby league player

1988Dez Bryant, American football player

1988Nathan Ross, Australian rugby league player

1987Artur Jędrzejczyk, Polish footballer

1987Laura Geitz, Australian netball player

1987Tim Breukers, Dutch footballer

1986Adrian Zaugg, South African race car driver

1986Alexz Johnson, Canadian actress and singer-songwriter

1986Suhas Gopinath, Indian businessman

1986Szymon Pawłowski, Polish footballer

1985Marcell Jansen, German footballer

1985Miki Miyamura, Japanese tennis player

1984Ayila Yussuf, Nigerian footballer

1984Dustin Brown, American ice hockey player

1983Anton Buslov, Russian astrophysicist and journalist (died 2014)

1982Devin Hester, American football player

1982Kamila Skolimowska, Polish hammer thrower (died 2009)

1981Guy Martin, English motorcycle racer

1981Vince Wilfork, American football player

1980Dan Stoenescu, Romanian career diplomat, political scientist, journalist, and essayist

1980Emme Rylan, American actress

Died on this day

2024Bernard Marcus, American billionaire businessman and philanthropist (born 1929)

2024Murray Sinclair, Canadian lawyer and politician (born 1951)

2023Akbar Golpayegani, Iranian vocalist (born 1934)

2020Ken Hensley, English rock singer-songwriter and musician (born 1945)

2019Gay Byrne, Irish broadcaster (born 1934)

2017Isabel Granada, Filipino-Spanish actress and singer (born 1976)

2017Ned Romero, American actor and opera singer (born 1926)

2016Catherine Davani, first female Papua New Guinean judge (born 1960)

2016Mansour Pourheidari, Iranian football player and coach (born 1946)

2015Károly Horváth, Romanian-Hungarian cellist, flute player, and composer (born 1950)

2015Lee Robinson, American lawyer and politician (born 1943)

2015Piotr Domaradzki, Polish-American historian and journalist (born 1946)

2015René Girard, French-American historian, philosopher, and critic (born 1923)

2014Enrique Olivera, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 2nd Chief of Government of the City of Buenos Aires (born 1940)

2014George Edgar Slusser, American author and academic (born 1939)

2014S. Donald Stookey, American physicist and chemist, invented CorningWare (born 1915)

2013John D. Hawk, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1924)

2013Leonid Stolovich, Russian-Estonian philosopher and academic (born 1929)

2013Ray Willsey, Canadian-American football player and coach (born 1928)

2012David Resnick, Brazilian-Israeli architect, designed Yad Kennedy (born 1924)

2011Andy Rooney, American author, critic, journalist, and television personality (born 1919)

2011Arnold Green, Latvian-Estonian soldier and politician (born 1920)

2010Sparky Anderson, American baseball player and manager (born 1934)

2009Hubertus Brandenburg, German bishop (born 1923)

2008Juan Camilo Mouriño, French-Mexican economist and politician, Mexican Secretary of the Interior (born 1971)

2008Michael Crichton, American medical doctor, author, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1942)

2008Rosella Hightower, American ballerina (born 1920)

2007Karl Rebane, Estonian physicist and academic (born 1926)

2007Peter Viertel, German-American author and screenwriter (born 1920)

2006Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, American author (born 1908)

Quote of the day

“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.”

Marcus Aurelius

Questions people ask

Where do the entries come from?

From Wikipedia’s on-this-day pages for this language, updated once a day and ordered by how often each article is read.

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